A journey of finding primordial purity of thought,word and action within oneself.

Friday, April 20, 2012

Where is the high moral ground?

The article on the book ‘Nanma
Niranjavare Swasthi’ by Sister Mary in First Post is heart wrenching,
disappointing and serious all at the same time. The fact that it evokes such
diverse and mixed reactions is indicative of the sensitivity and complexity of
the topic. Instead of giving a quick emotional response, I decided to delayer
the three reactions. The views expressed are certainly personal but I do think
they are reflective of the generation I belong to and it’s frustrations with
the religion that our parents taught us to practice.

Firstly, the personal narrative
of Sister Mary shook me up to the core. One, for the personal trials and
tribulations she had to go through in spite of choosing the high noble path of
service. And, also by the fact that her marginalization was compounded by her
being female. I can only barely
empathize how it must have been to go through all that she did and yet manage
to have the courage to stand up to her ideals. For living the message of
service in the most pristine way possible despite the obstacles life had
offered to her, I personally hold her in high respect and draw inspiration from
her commitment.

However, abstracting to what
the story symbolizes at an institutional and society level, it leaves me with
disappointment. The story is a reflection of how church as an institution and
more generally religious institutions, no longer stand on the pedestal of human
excellence or the pursuit of it. In fact, this story reflects the slow but
dangerous degradation of integrity of these institutions and our society as a
whole. In the garb of high moral ground and a life of core values and service,
these institutions in majority are turning out as platforms for debauchery and
power exertion by men. Coming from a scientific and rational background, I
would question the idea of celibacy and chaste life that most religions impose
on their priests, nuns and monks. Especially, in the context of our modern
social norms in which our films and all other forms of entertainment are
becoming salacious by the day. It surely requires the highest degree of moral
probity to not to yield to temptations of such messages. Either they have must
stricter codes on how to uphold and practice the values they preach to their
unsuspecting believers or these religious institutions need to question,
innovate and think of adapting themselves to the changing societal norms.
Values as they say are caught and not taught.

Lastly, the article raises
serious questions about the role of religion and religious institutions in our
society. To paraphrase Swami Vivekananda’s idea of religion, he said that if
you can have the body of a Muslim, heart of a Christian and soul of a Hindu,
you have reached the pinnacle of human life. What he meant was if you can
practice austerity that Islam preaches, if you can serve others like Jesus did
and if you can reflect within deeply like Gita says, you don’t need the
crutches of religion to live in an uncertain world and pursue the highest
truth. I hope that the story will make all of us question our own scientific
temper and reasoning mind. What do we need religion for in life? Can we distill
the teachings of all religions and practice them in an individual way? Can we
question the lives of gurus, nuns and priests who use religion to manipulate
unsuspecting people? More importantly, can we as a society or an aspiring
modern society develop scientific temper and search for the fundamental truths
through evidence, reason and debate?

About Me

Indian by nationality, journeyman by choice, and will be something by destiny.I seek the most sought after question in human history - Who am I? And,hopefully in the process demystify some elements of the physical, and the metaphysical world around me.